9 11: Remember Claire Taylor
by IluvmyTV-ugottaproblem
Summary: My version of the Taylors, yes, I'm teasing. You'll just have to wait and see. Rated T for the angstiness of the situation
1. His First Family

A/N: It's almost 9/11 and I can't resist writing this story. It's Claire, Mac and Stell. With a new OC. Or two. What if Claire and Mac had had a kid? A daughter? A son? Both? You'll see. This is a two-shot that may become more, not sure yet.

Disclaimer: There's more to me than you know. Owning, CBS, isn't something.  
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Annabeth Marianne Conrad-Taylor was standing outside the perimeter around Ground Zero. Her little brother was holding her hand. Annabeth was 14 and Dylan Carter Conrad-Taylor was 9. It was the eighth anniversary of their mother's death. Their father had given them up when she died; he couldn't handle it. When Stella Bonasera and their father, Mac Taylor, got married, the two kids were sitting in the back pew. That was last year though. This year, Mac had decided to call the two, along with their half brother Reid, to Ground Zero on the anniversary of Claire's death. They were going to get to meet their half sisters, Aribella, Sarah, Carmen and Jordan.

"Sissy! It's Reid!" Dylan had spotted his half brother almost immediatley, and ran to him after telling his sister. They'd lived in Reid's foster parents house since after Mac gave up on them.

They didn't resent their father for giving them up, Annabeth was really the only one of the two who remembered their father, since she was six when her mom died. Dylan had only been one at the time.

"Hey Annie." Reid called,using his nickname for his half sister. At Reid's side was his girlfriend, Dominique. She was a sweet girl, a blonde, but amazingly witty and smart. Her last name; Loriales. Her father had been a mobster in his prime. She hated him for it.

"Hey Reeds, Domino." Annabeth called, using her silly nicknames for them.

"How you holding up girl?" Dominique asked, hugging the young woman.

"Better than dad may be." Annabeth said, looking behind her, waiting for her father and his wife, along with their children.

"Well, we'll just have to wait and see I guess." Reid said as he hoisted Dylan up into his arms. "You've gotten bigger lil' bro! Yes you have!" He played with the little boy's hair.

Annabeth went and sat in front of a long abandoned building. The day was gray, and even surrounded by people she loved and cared for, she felt lonely. Dominique came and sat beside her.

"Hey girlfriend, what's wrong." She asked, nudging Annabeth slightly.

Annabeth looked up at the sky, willing it to let go of it's own tears. "It's too hard today." She stated, not looking to the beautiful blonde beside her.

Annabeth wasn't happy with anything about her. Her brown hair was stringy, with orange strands peppered in. Her gray-blue eyes were dull and lifeless, and her black nails were chipping and had been gnawed on. She had on a blue tunic with dark skinny jeans. Even as a little girl her mom had told her she looked gorgeous in blue jeans. And the color blue. Her favorite thing about her outfit were her boots. They'd been her mother's. On the sole, her mother had actually, carefully, burned the name "Claire Conrad" in so that she'd forever know they were hers.

"It's too hard today for everyone sweetie." Dom said, putting an arm around Annabeth.

"I know, but, me and dad and Stell, it's hardest. We knew mom. Reid didn't, Dylan was only a year old and really doesn't remember anything, the girls weren't even born yet. You and Reid only met what? Five years after her death? And Reid didn't even know she was gone!" Annabeth's head rolled back as she set it on the brick building. "Stella and Mom were best. Friends. There wasn't anything we could do, I know. I just wish she hadn't gone to work 8 years ago." She said. The tears were falling now.

"You know, it's okay to cry Bethie." Mac said, carrying a clingy, dirty blonde haired girl with neon green eyes.

"Daddy!"  
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A/N: So? Yeah, I know, it's pretty angsty. I didn't lose anybody in 9/11 but, (now, I don't mean to pry) did any of you? I'd love to know, and I'd love reviews! Okay guys! Off to work on the second chappie!!

Kisses and Tissues

~Sarah~


	2. The New, Old and Combined

A/N: AHHH!! Working, working, working, working!! Okay, Here's the second chappie!!!!! KISSIES!!!!

Disclaimer: *grunts and turns around*  
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"Hey Dylan!" Mac set the little girl down and picked his son up, hugging him tightly.

"Hey Daddy." Annabeth said, scuffing the toe of her shoe against the concrete.

"Hey Bethie. You hangin' in there?" Mac asked, hugging his daughter.

"I'm hangin', falling a bit, but hangin'." She said, hugging her dad back.

Stella walked up, two girls in a stroller behind her and a short girl, almost identical to the one in Mac's arms, was standing behind the stroller hiding.

"Good to see you still in the land of the staying guys." Stella said, hugging Annabeth. She'd known the kids since before she'd married Mac. And Claire had told her about Reid when they'd met.

"Yeah right, like your gonna get rid of us." Dominique snorted.

"Didn't think so." Mac said, picking up the indentical looking girls. "Guys, these are two of your sisters, Sarah and Carmen. Girls say hi." He set them down and they clung to his pantlegs. "Come on, say hi to your sissy and brother." Mac said, pushing them forward.

"Uhhh, hi. I'm," She ducked her head, her curls looking a lot like Stella's. "I'm Sarah." At that moment, Annabeth noticed the differences between the two. Sarah had more hazel eyes than green and had a small smattering of freckles on her nose and cheeks.

"Hi, I'm Annabeth. I'm your older sister." Annabeth said, kneeling down to the little girl. She and her sisters seemed smarter than most kids their age. "What's your sister's name?" Annabeth asked, pointing to the other girl who was still clinging to Mac's leg.

"That's my twin. I'm five minutes older than her. Her name's-"

"My name's Carmen! Say-Say, I can introduce myself." Carmen said, bouncing over, slightly angry. Her forehead furrowed just like Mac's.

"Well, nice to meet you Carmen. Are your sisters gonna come over?" Annabeth asked.

"No, that's Aribella and that's Jordan. Ari's the oldest of all of us and Jordan's youngest." Carmen said.

"Okay, why aren't they walking like you two?" Annabeth was asking enough questions to keep the adults talking about 9/11, eight years ago.

"Because Jordan has a birth defect and can't walk, and Aribella doesn't think that she should be alone." Sarah said, rocking back and forth on her heels.

"I'm gonna go talk to Dad. You can stay and play with Dylan." Annabeth stated, pulling her brother by the shirt collar to the girls.

"It's nice to know that the whole family is here." Stella stated, looking toward her four daughters and Dylan, who was basically her step-son, no matter if she adopted him or not.

"Yeah, it is. The whole family." Reid said, hugging Dominique closer to him.

"When will you two get married? Mom would've wanted that and you know it." Annabeth said, standing next to her dad and Stella.

"I know." Reid leaned down and whispered in her ear, "I'm planning that for next week, be _quiet!_" He hissed, pulling back up and lightly kissing Dom on the cheek.

"So, Dom, what does bring you with Reid?" Mac asked.

_Why are you so curious Daddy!_ Annabeth thought.

"I realized that, I wanted to be with him today. It's hard for both of us. I lost two siblings." Dominique stated, her blue eyes glazing with tears.

"Oh, my God." Stella and Annabeth gasped at the same time.

"It's," Dom wiped at her eyes carefully, trying not to smear her thick eyeliner, "it's okay. I wasn't that close to them . Of course, they were my twins. Evan and Caiti were so different than me. Always work, no play. They weren't ever home, never taking care of me, the runt of the litter, and our abusive, drug addict dad. I miss 'em!" She collapsed, shaking, into Reid's shoulder.

"It's okay, Dom. We all miss Claire. It's okay to be sad today." Annabeth said, trying to console the older woman as tears welled up in her eyes too.

"Bethie, come here." Mac said, pulling his oldest daughter into his arms, as tears dripped down his face. Stella stood at Mac's shoulder, crying, not sobbing like the others, and set a shaking hand on his left cheek. Her signal for, "I've made a decision."

Mac and Stella had talked for a long time about Stella adopting the two kids. She didn't want to take Claire's place, she just didn't want Annabeth to grow up without a mother figure either.

"Bethie, I need you to go get Dylan, Stella and I want to talk to you two." Mac whispered, releasing her.

" 'K Dad." Annabeth said, wiping at her face, trying to get rid of the smeared mascara.

"It's not gonna come off, you'll need to take some heavy duty makeup remover to it, Beth." Stella said. Anna mock-glared at her and walked to her brother. Sending Sarah and Carmen to stay with Jordan and Aribella.

"What do you want to tell us Dad?" Annabeth asked. Dylan was still slightly unsure of Mac. It was understandable though because he didn't really remember Mac.

"Stella and I have talked for a while and finally figured, why not have Stell adopt you, and you come live with us. Like it should've been, and should be." Mac said.

"Daddy, I'd love that, but, Dylan is still scared of you sometimes. It really all depends on him." She said, leaning down as her brother hugged her closer. He may of been 9, but he'd been born early and had developed some disabilities. It was hard to take care of him, but Annabeth wouldn't of had it any other way.

"I wanna live with 'em 'Nabeth. Sarah and Carm are fun and I could help take care of Jordan." Dylan said, looking up at his sister.

"Okay, then, I think that's a yes, Dad." Annabeth said, her blue/gray eyes sparking for the first time in years. She had green specks that noted just how much she was like Claire. "So, Stella, do I get to call you 'Mom' or is it 'Stella'?" She joked.

"Oh thank you Beth!" Stella said hugging the young girl.

"Mommy? Does Sissy live with us?" Sarah asked, coming over to the little group.

"Yep, she and Dylan too. Now, Sissy's name is Annabeth, can you say that?" Stella asked the little girl. Carmen walked over to Annabeth and was picked up into her sister's arms.

"'Nabet!" Sarah and Carmen giggled simultaneously.

"Close enough." Annabeth shrugged.

Dylan came over pushing the stroller. Aribella and Jordan were laughing happily. Mac plucked Ari out of the stroller and Dylan easily held Jordan, careful for her legs and lower back. They all stared at him. As far as Annabeth knew, he'd never held a child before.

"Bet, you send me to those therapy classes, there are little children there." Dylan said.

"Okay, so, when are the papers gonna be filed Dad? I wanna move in ASAP." Annabeth asked impatiently. She could feel a major weight leave her heart and fill in the break. She had a family again. A mom, a dad, a couple younger sisters and her brothers. And her soon-to-be sister-in-law.

When the sun came out, it broke right over where the cross Mac had placed for Claire was. Annabeth saw it as a signal, that she may have just been granted to Stella by Claire, as though she knew that Stella would take care of her. Of the whole family, that was once Claire's.  
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A/N: Yeah, it's a day late, big whoop. It's still a continuation of the story. And everyone's in tears and all that jazz, thank you and please review! Flame policy stands as always and you better not critisize! That means you anonymous reviewers! I can turn you off!!! *shakes fist*

Kisses and Kleenex

~Sarah~


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